Following up on 2013’s multi-disc deluxe edition of the Northern Irish soul man’s 1970 classic Moondance and on the heels of Legacy Recordings’ announcement earlier this week that the Sony imprint has acquired the majority of Morrison’s post-1971 catalogue, Rhino has just announced two new deluxe editions drawn from Morrison’s seminal early Warner Bros. discography. Both 1968’s label debut Astral Weeks and 1970’s jubilant His Band and the Street Choir will get remastered and expanded editions on October 30.

Astral Weeks failed to dent the charts when it was released in the fall of 1968, but the hypnotic song cycle’s singular fusion of folk, jazz, soul, blues and beyond has earned Astral Weeks its status as an ahead-of-its-time classic. The upcoming deluxe edition presents four previously unreleased recordings offering a fly-on-the-wall view of the interplay between Morrison and the quartet that joined him in the studio: bassist Richard Davis, guitarist Jay Berliner, percussionist Warren Smith, Jr., and Modern Jazz Quartet drummer Connie Kay. These bonus tracks include the first take of “Beside You,” extended versions of “Slim Slow Slider” and “Ballerina,” and a stripped-back alternate take of “Madame George” that emphasizes the vibraphone.

Morrison, of course, followed up the mystical Astral Weeks with the much more commercial Moondance. How to follow Moondance? He returned a few months later in 1970 with His Band and the Street Choir, featuring some of his most loose and fresh songs like the hit “Domino” and “Blue Money.” This remastered version of the album is expanded with five previously unreleased bonus tracks, including an early, raw take of “Give Me a Kiss” without piano, horns or backing vocals. Morrison’s falsetto shines on Take 3 of “Gypsy Queen,” while the alternate version of “I’ve Been Working” ratchets up the funk quotient. Take 10 of “Call Me Up in Dreamland” and an alternate of “I’ll Be Your Lover Too” round out the reissue.

Both single-disc titles are due from Warner Bros. Records and Rhino on October 30 at which time they will also be available digitally. Pre-order links are not yet active, but watch this space!

Joe Marchese

JOE MARCHESE (Editor) joined The Second Disc shortly after its launch in early 2010, and has since penned daily news and reviews about classic music of all genres. He has contributed liner notes to reissues from a diverse array of artists, among them Paul Williams, Lesley Gore, Dusty Springfield, B.J. Thomas, The 5th Dimension, Burt Bacharach, The Mamas and the Papas, Carpenters, Perry Como, Peggy Lipton, Doris Day, and Andy Williams, and has compiled releases for talents including Robert Goulet and Keith Allison of Paul Revere and the Raiders.
In 2009, Joe began contributing theatre and music reviews to the print publication The Sondheim Review, and his work still appears with frequency in the magazine. In 2012, he joined the staff of The Digital Bits as a regular contributor writing about film and television on DVD and Blu-ray.
Over the past two decades, Joe has also worked in a variety of capacities on and off Broadway as well as at some of the premier theatres in the U.S., including Lincoln Center Theater, George Street Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse, Long Wharf Theatre, and the York Theatre Company. He has felt privileged to work on productions alongside artists such as the late Jack Klugman, Eli Wallach, Arthur Laurents, Betty Comden and Adolph Green.
In 2015, Joe formed the Second Disc Records label. Celebrating the great songwriters, producers and artists who created the sound of American popular song, Second Disc Records, in conjunction with Real Gone Music, has released newly-curated collections produced by Joe from iconic artists such as The Supremes, Melissa Manchester, Laura Nyro, Bobby Darin and Johnny Mathis, legendary producer Bob Crewe, soul legend Wilson Pickett, and many others.
Joe currently resides in the suburbs of New York City.

Comments

Van will probably throw a fit when he see’s this! Still no Tupelo Honey release though? Strange but I’m happy between I’ll finally be able to get all the remastered VM titles that I’ve wanted for years.

Tupelo Honey did in fact get a remastering and an SHM-treatment in the land of the rising sun! 2009 was the year. I have the Mini-LP. It was the same year that Van decided to pull the plug on the upcoming remasters. This was during his Polygram period.
Let’s hope the new deal can fullfill our hopes of Van Morrison’s wonderful catalogue being reissued. I’m not wild about extra tracks, I just want the real albums…

Finally! An American remastering & re-release of one of rock’s greatest albums. I’m a little hesitant, though, because the American remaster of _Moondance_ is far inferior to the Japanese remaster. I had had the Japanese release first, several years ago, and it blew me away. I bought the expanded American release of _Moondance_ recently only because of the second disc of alternate takes, and I was very disappointed that it didn’t compare with the import. Now, it is perhaps better than any previous version in the ears of those who haven’t heard the Japanese version (which is worth the extra $10 or $15). Will I buy the upcoming _Astral Weeks_? Probably, hoping it’s somewhere in the ballpark with the Japanese remaster (which I cherish). I’m interested, too, in the bonus tracks, but I already have several from bootleg sources.
I think the Japanese version of _His Band & the Street Choir_ is wonderful, too, yet I’ll likely go for this upcoming release, as well.
It’s all good.
lbg

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